​“Seize the day and get momentum when you have a small window of opportunity. And don’t give world-class opposition a sniff,” is Omphile Ramela’s advice to his Cape Cobras colleagues ahead of their opening clash of the Ram Slam T20 Challenge at PPC Newlands on Sunday.

The Cape Cobras and the bizhub Highveld Lions will meet on Sunday at 16:00. The Warriors and the VKB Knights will kick-off the double-header at PPC Newlands at 12:00 on Sunday.

The Cape Cobras are the defending champions in the domestic T20-showpiece. Asked if they can retain the trophy, Ramela said: “We are always up there with the top-runners. The T20-competition will be very competitive.”

Ramela was a match-winner with the bat in the final last season, smashing 54 off 34 balls. The self-assured number-three batsman says he is a better practitioner of the T20-game now than 12 months ago.“It is about confidence, and I feel I have got that by performing at South Africa A-level,” he adds.

Ramela hammered three centuries in five innings earlier in 2015. It included a double-ton for the Cape Cobras against The Unlimited Titans, and a hundred on debut for South Africa A.

Part of his preparations includes visualizing power hitting at different stages of the game and then practising it on the training ground.​The Ram Slam T20 Challenge will feature world-class players like Kieron Pollard of the Cape Cobras, Robin Peterson of the Cape Cobras, Richard Levi of the Cobras, Quinton de Kock and Albie Morkel (both Titans), Kevin Pietersen of the Sunfoil Dolphins and Andre Russell of the VKB Knights.